Green scorecard: What grade did your reps and senators earn?

Thursday

Feb 21, 2013 at 12:01 AMFeb 21, 2013 at 8:17 PM

Scorecards on how Massachusetts members of Congress voted on major environmental issues last year highlight how differently former Sens. Scott Brown and John Kerry dealt with legislation on energy, wildlife and clean air and water.

David Riley

Scorecards on how Massachusetts members of Congress voted on major environmental issues last year highlight how differently former Sens. Scott Brown and John Kerry dealt with legislation on energy, wildlife and clean air and water.

Brown, a Republican, voted the way favored by the League of Conservation Voters on eight of 14 key environmental bills or amendments the green group tracked, or 57 percent, according to scorecards the organization released in late February.

That was up from just four out of 11 bills tracked in 2011, or 36 percent.

A Democrat, Kerry’s votes last year aligned with the league’s position 93 percent of the time, down from a perfect score in 2011.

First-term Sen. Elizabeth Warren defeated Brown in the 2012 election and interim Sen. William “Mo” Cowan has filled Kerry’s seat since he stepped down Feb. 1 to serve as President Barack Obama’s new secretary of state.

On the U.S. House side, Bay State representatives received overall positive scores for votes on 35 pieces of legislation. Scores ranged from 86 percent for Reps. Niki Tsongas, D-3rd, and Richard Neal, D-1st, to 100 percent for U.S. Rep. Ed Markey, D-5th.

Markey is running for Kerry’s seat. His rival for the Democratic nomination in that race, Rep. Stephen Lynch, D-8th, received a score of 89 percent last year.

During a conference call on the new scores, leaders of the League of Conservation Voters said last year’s Republican-led House was the worst for the environment since the group began releasing congressional report cards in 1971.

“Our message is quite clear, which is goodbye and good riddance,” and we need to do better this year, said Gene Karpinski, the league’s president.

He was more measured on the narrowly Democrat-controlled Senate, which he said passed “sharp rebukes” to the “polluter-driven agenda” of the House.

The Bay State congressional delegation’s average score was 92 percent, ranking it two points below only two other states – Delaware and Rhode Island – and on par with Connecticut. The Senate average was 75 percent for Massachusetts, a figure that ranks the Bay State below 16 others and matches West Virginia.

Brown voted against amendments to allow the military to invest in alternative fuels, end certain subsidies for ethanol and give the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration a role in deciding whether to allow genetically-engineered fish.

Kerry voted yes, the position the league preferred, on all but the fish amendment.

Brown also voted for a handful of measures the league opposed, including an effort to clear the way for building the Keystone XL oil pipeline from Canada. However, Kerry and Brown agreed on upholding limits on air pollution from mercury, blocking new offshore drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge and several other votes.

House members from Massachusetts voted in lock step on many issues, but differed on an amendment aimed at reducing funding for fossil fuel research and development programs, according to the league.

Lynch was the sole Bay State congressman to vote for a motion to instruct House members negotiating with the Senate on a transportation bill to insist on including approval for the Keystone XL pipeline, the league said.

Tsongas and Capuano missed the vote.

Lynch and Keating also voted for a transportation bill that would have included approval for the Keystone pipeline, the league said. The rest of the delegation opposed it.

The league gave high lifetime scores to all Bay State representatives, ranging from 90 percent for Neal to 99 percent for McGovern. Lynch and Markey both earned scores of 94 percent.

(David Riley can be reached at 508-626-4424 or driley@wickedlocal.com.)

Never miss a story

Choose the plan that's right for you.
Digital access or digital and print delivery.